Popular baby names in California, 1944

The most popular baby names in California in 1944 were Linda for girls (3,003 babies) and Robert for boys (4,631). Linda ranked #3 nationally for girls. Robert ranked #2 nationally for boys. Social Security records list 164,363 babies born in California in 1944 with a name given to at least five children of the same sex in the state.

Names that stood out in California in 1944

Names given at least 15 times in California that year and at least twice as common as in the US as a whole.

Girls

Lupe: 115 babies, 4.4× the national rate
Yolanda: 129 babies, 3.8× the national rate
Robin: 75 babies, 3.3× the national rate
Pam: 64 babies, 3.3× the national rate
Melinda: 76 babies, 3.2× the national rate
Laurie: 63 babies, 2.9× the national rate
Margarita: 45 babies, 2.9× the national rate
Carmen: 156 babies, 2.8× the national rate
Terry: 156 babies, 2.8× the national rate
Toni: 122 babies, 2.7× the national rate

Boys

Salvador: 65 babies, 4.3× the national rate
Jess: 43 babies, 3.9× the national rate
Manuel: 310 babies, 3.6× the national rate
Ron: 117 babies, 3.6× the national rate
Rudy: 119 babies, 3.5× the national rate
Alfonso: 58 babies, 3.4× the national rate
Kirk: 46 babies, 3.4× the national rate
Tim: 122 babies, 3.3× the national rate
Armando: 51 babies, 3.3× the national rate
Ken: 86 babies, 3.2× the national rate

Top 50 girls' and boys' names in California, 1944

Girls
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1943	US rank
1	Linda	3,003	↑1	3
2	Mary	2,975	↓1	1
3	Patricia	2,338	–	4
4	Barbara	2,186	–	2
5	Carol	2,089	↑1	5
6	Sharon	2,058	↓1	8
7	Sandra	1,646	–	6
8	Susan	1,596	↑1	13
9	Judith	1,383	↓1	9
10	Nancy	1,374	–	7
11	Donna	1,281	↑2	17
12	Judy	1,232	↓1	12
13	Karen	1,177	↓1	16
14	Carolyn	1,033	–	11
15	Kathleen	1,008	↑2	20
16	Margaret	942	–	14
17	Diane	927	↓2	24
18	Pamela	833	↑9	44
19	Shirley	789	↓1	15
20	Gloria	767	↑6	25
21	Janet	763	–	21
22	Cheryl	759	↑16	36
23	Betty	757	↓4	10
24	Marilyn	721	↓4	27
25	Joan	700	↓2	22
26	Virginia	661	↓4	26
27	Janice	620	↓2	28
28	Joyce	586	↓4	18
29	Bonnie	558	–	34
30	Beverly	542	↓2	35
31	Diana	518	↑1	60
32	Carole	480	↑1	43
33	Elizabeth	464	↑2	23
34	Dorothy	461	↓3	19
35	Frances	457	↓5	33
36	Helen	452	↓2	31
37	Martha	426	↓1	29
38	Sally	392	↑3	59
39	Jean	391	↑1	37
40	Ann	369	↑4	39
41	Connie	360	↑6	51
42	Alice	350	↓5	38
43	Christine	347	new	75
44	Gail	340	↑5	56
45	Darlene	325	↓6	76
46	Ruth	314	↓4	32
47	Maria	309	new	80
48	Suzanne	309	new	78
49	Dolores	308	↓1	92
50	Roberta	305	new	70

Boys
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1943	US rank
1	Robert	4,631	–	2
2	John	4,223	–	3
3	James	3,907	–	1
4	Richard	3,555	–	5
5	William	2,895	–	4
6	Michael	2,796	↑1	9
7	David	2,590	↓1	6
8	Ronald	1,956	–	10
9	Gary	1,943	–	15
10	Charles	1,718	–	7
11	Thomas	1,562	–	8
12	Donald	1,481	↑1	11
13	Larry	1,370	↓1	12
14	Dennis	1,292	–	20
15	George	1,126	–	14
16	Kenneth	1,119	–	16
17	Jerry	951	–	19
18	Paul	944	–	17
19	Frank	902	–	21
20	Edward	852	–	18
21	Stephen	781	↑1	28
22	Joseph	701	↓1	13
23	Daniel	668	↑2	25
24	Raymond	668	↓1	22
25	Steven	644	↑5	52
26	Jack	642	↓2	30
27	Jim	596	↑4	68
28	Joe	563	↑1	33
29	Roger	543	↓3	23
30	Mike	538	↑4	80
31	Gerald	537	↓3	24
32	Bill	511	–	66
33	Douglas	480	↓6	34
34	Arthur	460	↓1	29
35	Fred	460	–	47
36	Terry	435	↑2	43
37	Lawrence	415	↑2	32
38	Bruce	411	↑2	51
39	Don	408	↓3	72
40	Ralph	407	↑4	42
41	Wayne	392	↑1	37
42	Peter	391	↓5	40
43	Steve	384	↑4	89
44	Tom	376	↑2	87
45	Walter	374	↓2	26
46	Alan	368	new	55
47	Albert	368	↑1	44
48	Harold	367	↓7	27
49	Roy	367	–	39
50	Patrick	354	new	64

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